Cooking School: Big Easy Taste

On a stretch of the oldest street in New Orleans, between the French Quarter and the New Orleans Museum of Art, a historic 1798 West Indies Creole-style plantation home is nestled on two lushly landscaped acres. Here, at this landmark bed and breakfast called The House on Bayou Road, the New Orleans Cooking Experience is "in residence" and thriving.

Judy Jurisich opened the school in April 2004. Her vision: a cooking school that "gives visitors a sense of authentic New Orleans culture. We wanted to offer a peek behind the curtains, to show the how and the why of Cajun and Creole cooking."

Judy views her cooking school's mission as helping to preserve the complex, refined Creole food traditions and those of its indigenous twin, the simpler, spicier Cajun cooking.

Today the student mix is half visitors and half food-proud locals reconnecting with their history. Classes are held Thursdays through Saturdays and offered as single sessions or weekend packages. Small, relaxed, and intimate, they are taught, demonstration-style, around the prep island in the warm, cluttered main-house kitchen, followed by a tour and a meal in the garden or dining room.

Frank Brigtsen, shown here, teaches every Thursday night. The gentlemanly chef and owner of the award-winning Brigtsen’s Restaurant did his tutelage under the masters—the venerable Brennan family of the famous Commander’s Palace and the legendary Paul Prudhomme at K-Paul’s Louisiana Kitchen, where Frank became executive chef prior to opening his own restaurant.

Poppy Tooker (shown here) and two other chefs rotate classes the remaining days. “The food diva of New Orleans,” Poppy studied with cooking guru Madeleine Kamman. Poppy exudes wit and energy, and possesses an endless knowledge of New Orleans food history. She founded the New Orleans Slow Food chapter and has worked to save such traditional foods as Creole cream cheese from disappearing.

The chefs create their own curriculum, keeping seasonality at the top of the list, although each class includes at least one dish that involves making a brown roux, the flour-and-butter building block of many Creole dishes.

"Creole is the original fusion food," Frank explains. "It has French, African, Spanish, and Caribbean influences that are hundreds of years old. It's what we call 'city food,' and it is a seafood-based cuisine. Cajun is 'country food' and is pork- and chicken-based. It didn't originally use a roux-the Acadian settlers didn't have access to flour. But this changed over time."

Classes at the New Orleans Cooking Experience begin at $150 for a single session. Accommodations at the House on Bayou Road are not included; there is a discount rate for students. For classes, schedules, chef biographies, and other details, visit neworleanscookingexperience.com.

The House on Bayou Road was built in 1798 as an indigo plantation by the head surgeon of the Spanish Army. The house remained in private hands until 35 years ago, when it became a first-class bed and breakfast. Traditional colonial architecture and airy rooms are welcoming and hospitable. Visit houseonbayouroad.com for details.

This dish is named for the founder of New Orleans, Jean Baptiste le Moyne, Sieur de Bienville. It was created at Arnaud's Restaurant in the French Quarter. As Antoine's was known for Oysters Rockefeller, Oysters Bienville became one of Count Arnaud's signature dishes.

Open oysters in shells (see tip below). With a knife, remove oysters from shells; drain well. Wash shells. Place each oyster in the deep half of each shell. Arrange on bed of coarse rock salt in shallow pans. (Or, steady shells on pan lined with crumpled foil.)

To serve, preheat oven to 500°F . Remove vegetable mixture from refrigerator; set aside until serving time. Top each oyster on the half-shell with about 3 tablespoons sauce. Bake for 15 minutes. Top each oyster with a rounded teaspoon of the reserved vegetable mixture. Garnish with fresh thyme sprigs. Serve immediately. Makes 36 oysters (8 to 10 servings).

To shuck an oyster, hold one oyster, flat side up, in an oven mitt or kitchen towel. Using a strong-bladed oyster knife, insert knife tip into hinge between the shell halves. Twist blade to pry open oyster.